Black Amnesia
by CatNinja0122
Summary: Amnesia has never brought anything good, but most of the time, people regain at least half their lost memories. Not Kat. After her Duel with Black Mist, he captures her and she loses all her memories. Now it's up to Kite, Hart and all of Yuma's friends to retrieve them from the thieving sludge before he erases them from all of time, otherwise the Numbers could be in grave danger...
1. Chapter 1: Hump Day Memories

Alright, a new story! Now I realize it isn't Hump Day, but my impatience decided I couldn't wait that long to post this. So just pretend it's everyone's favorite day of the week and enjoy, but the next time I involve the reference to Hump Day, it will be posted on a Wednesday, no exceptions. Hopefully I'll have something else to do on the other days!

"Now Heartearth Dragon, attack with Dragon Canon Blast!"

The dragon roared in response to its command. It turned Galaxy Eyes Photon Dragon into little particles and sent the opponent, Kite Tenjo, flying sky-high. When he landed, he nearly slid off the roof of the building they were Dueling on. The girl he was Dueling was smirking at that point. She really was a cocky person, wasn't she?

"No...how is that possible?" Kite watched in horror as his Life Points dropped to zero. He growled, not believing he'd lost, let alone to a female Duelist. He'd been especially stunned when he'd found out she used a Photon Transformation as well.

"It's very possible Kite."

She walked over. Rather than attempt to steal his soul or something like that, she smiled and stuck her hand out to help him up. Kite hesitated for a moment, fearing it may be a trick. But he soon took her hand and allowed her to pull him up. Their eyes locked onto one another's for a while, then darted away momentarily before going in a pattern like that.

"I'll never understand how you were able to defeat me. What's your name? I must know." Kite demanded, getting in the girl's face.

"My name is Kat. I'm an old pro at what I do, Kite. And this won't be the last you see of me, I promise!"

Kat squealed and shifted from foot to foot as her Photon Transformation wore off, revealing her original white shirt and turquoise skirt. They'd turned black and pink during the Duel. Her momentarily blue eye tuned back to green, matching now with the other one as her yellow Gazer Tattoo shattered away. Kite was confused, however. What did she mean by what she said?

"Wait a minute Kat!"

The brown-haired girl whipped around, her neon-blue bangs fluttering in the wind. "Yes Kite? What do you want?"

"What did you mean by what you said?"

"Huma? Oh, you mean how this won't be the last time we meet? Yeah, well that's because I started working for Heartland, like you. Looks like we're gonna be partners!"

Kite went wide-eyed. "What?!"

"That's right!" Kat smiled and winked behind her black glasses. "See ya first thing Hump Day!"

And with that, she was gone, soaring away through the air by herself. Kite slapped his forehead with his palm, muttering out a "Good grief." Not only was he going to be working with his newest rival, but she was so childish. Hump Day, really?

Kite wished that commercial had never come on as he and Orbital took off in the direction of the Heartland Tower. He certainly wasn't looking forward to this Wednesday.

XxXxXxXx

Kat smiled at the thought of the memory. It was hard to believe that was only four months ago that this occurred, strange to think about. She giggled. "That was funny."

Hart turned to her with a confused look. He had been sitting on Kat for two hours now, but she hadn't cared. The kid only weighed like 60 pounds. Of course she could deal with that.

"What are you talking about?"

"Nothing."

Hart grabbed Kat by the shoulders and shook her. "Tell me!"

"Nya, stop it!" Kat shoved Hart off her and rolled off the couch, hitting the coffee table and flopping on the floor. "Pain."

"I wonder why?" Hart teased.

"Shut up."

"Just tell me!"

"Well I was just thinking about how funny it was when I defeated Kite and then told him I'd be joining the team. Hysterical moment."

"Oh, I get it." Hart smiled. "I was gonna say, what's so funny about a guy getting murdered with an axe?"

Now Kat sat up. "Are you even old enough to watch this?" she asked, turning to meet Hart's golden-eyed gaze. He shrugged.

"I'm eight and a half."

"...Would Kite be okay with this?"

"Probably not."

"Well okay then." Kat shrugged and returned her attention to her iPod. Hart giggled. It was like Kat was just fine with anything.

That's why she was a perfect babysitter for him while Kite and Orbital were away. Hart was happy they'd started dating. He remembered it clearly. Two months after they'd met, they had a Tag-Team Duel against two other people and won.

That was when they'd realized they loved each other. Kite had gotten used to Kat being childish, mainly because Hart enjoyed it and he thought it was a good thing for her to be that way around him. They got along well, all three of them.

And ever since then, whenever Kite needed someone to watch over Hart while he and Orbital were gone, he always relied on Kat.

The door opened. Kat and Hart looked up and smiled as Kite walked in, shivering from the cold. He walked in farther, Orbital closing the door as his master sat on the couch with his little brother.

"So, how was your Hump Day?" Kat asked, now laying on the floor again. Kite raised an eyebrow, but he didn't bother to ask. He just shrugged.

"Okay I guess. I seriously kicked some ass when I was Dueling. You should've been there Kat. Woulda gotten a kick out of it."

"I bet I would've." Kat nodded, still texting on her iPod. She finished and looked up, then stood and sat on the couch. Kite pulled her close and stroked her neon-blue bangs. Hart giggled. The two of them went together perfectly.

Kat sighed and stared right up at Kite. "I love Hump Day," was all she said before all three of them returned their attention to the TV.


	2. Chapter 2: There's Nothing New Here

Kat suddenly jolted up from her spot against Kite. He and Hart stared at her as she raced around the corner, then listened as she bolted up the stairs. She soon came bouncing down them like a bunny, wearing the jacket Kite had given to her a month back. Hart raised an eyebrow at her. "Where are you going?" he asked.

"Out, looking for someone to Duel. I'll be back soon." Kat opened the front door after sliding her boots on, then took off into the sky with her own glider, one she'd fashioned into her Pikachu backpack.

Kite sighed. There was never a good outcome from Kat's Duels, whether it came crashing down on her or someone else. He just hoped nothing too horrible would happen this time. Last time she'd come home with a broken arm! And man had she not been happy, having not been able to Duel for about two months.

"I hope she's careful this time." Hart said, getting up and shutting the door. Kite nodded as his little brother jumped on him. Both of them had the same thoughts going through their heads as they stared at where Kat had once been standing.

Hopefully she'd come back in one piece this time.

Somewhere in downtown Heartland City...

The breeze that blew against her face and made her neon-blue bangs and her caped jacket whip around made Kat feel so happy. She enjoyed what she did, especially since the pay was so high. Being a Number Hunter was definitely her benefit.

Kat swooped down, taking a sharp right doing so. The Pikachu backpack that flew her used its wings to do just that. She still couldn't believe she turned that old plush toy of hers into a high-tech, Number Hunting masterpiece. Stopping momentarily, Kat tied her hair in a side-ponytail, then continued on her little "fun fly".

Suddenly, the radar began to ping. Kat knew what that meant. Looks like her fun had turned into serious business. She flew off towards the direction the pinging was loudest, and it continued to get louder and faster as she got closer to the Number.

"Now where'd it go...? Aha! Found you, ya little sneaky Number. Can't hide from Kat that easily." Kat mused in a cocky tone as she soared towards it. Landing on the roof of a building, she smiled.

Boy, didn't this bring back memories.

Kat looked around. Well, this is where her Number Sonar was going nuts. But there was nothing up here. So where was it?

"Huh. Wonder if maybe it's on the fritz?" Kat whispered to herself as she walked around the roof. The pinging got a little faster and a little louder as she walked.

Then it straightened to a tone that no matter where she was, it was right next to her. Kat was so confused. There were no Duelists up here, nor any dropped Cards. So what the heck could be making her radar fog off?

The thought then hit her like a brick. Kat gasped. It couldn't be true, right?

Wrong.

Kat whipped around just in time. Black sludge began to form behind her, and then, took the shape of the familiar figure of Astral, Yuma's friend. She'd never forget the look on their faces when that had first occurred. Kat's guess was Black Mist had mastered Astral's appearance, for now it was a common thing to see him in that black Astral form.

"Hello, Kat." Black Mist spat it. Kat growled. She was not in the mood for this, and would have to make a separate sonar just for this goopy freak. After eight encounters in one week, it was too much for her. Now this was just a petty little, ridiculous game.

"Black Mist. Whad'ya want this time? Better have a good reason for screwing up my sonar for an eighth time this week." Kat got a demanding tone as she said this. It simply made Black Mist cackle in amusement.

"Me? Oh I'm just here for my regular, a Duel with a side of me being the winner."

Now Kat was laughing. She straightened up and crossed her arms."I hope you meant my regular when you said that. I am always the one who wins, not you Black Mist."

Another cackle. Kat was furious. She just wanted to get it over with and go back to having some fun in the air like she was. This was getting to be a daily thing, a d today she was gonna put an end to it. Right now.

"Whatever. Let's just get this finished before I die of boredom." Kat smirked. She was going to get this done so fast, it would be like it never even happened. "Go Photon Transformation!"

Black Mist smirked as he watched Kat's outfit change with a flash of bright light. Her jacket changed to white, skirt to pink and shirt to black. The yellow Gazer Tattoo slid across her left eye, turning it blue. Kat's sparkly Duel Disk flew onto her arm, her deck loaded into it. Black Mist cackled again as his own Duel Disk landed on his arm.

"You are going down Black Mist!" Kat yelled, stomping her foot down in anger. Black Mist just laughed. Once again, he'd ticked Kat off.

"On the contrary, it is you who is going down, Kat! My victory is guaranteed!"

"What? Bluff! You can't possibly guarantee your own victory, especially since it's me you're Dueling! Nothing is ever certain!"

"That's what you think!"

Black Mist and Kat stayed silent for a while. As they stood stone stiff, the wind picked up speed, blowing Kat's now downed hair all around in circles. Both Duelists found themselves smirking as they shouted, "LET'S DUEL!"

Little did Kat know Black Mist had a certain little trick up his sleeve. He glanced down at one of the Cards in his Deck, then smirked again. It was glowing. His victory WAS guaranteed. Kat just simply couldn't see it.


	3. Chapter 3: What the Heck Just Happened?

WARNING: I'm like, really bad at writing Duels, so it's short and maybe not as good as I hoped. It's nothing new, but I tried. Hope you enjoy anyway and please don't forget to review!

"I overlay these three Monsters to build the Overlay Network!"

Kat threw her hand up and watched as her three Monsters became Overlay Units. They soared into the Network, and flashed wildly as Kat continued. "I XYZ Summon, Number 92, Heartearth Dragon!"

The huge, vicious dragon appeared, letting out a roar so furious you could literally see the sound waves from it. Black Mist stared, not expecting Kat to summon her best Monster so quickly, yet not surprised. Of course the girl would pull a move like that.

It was her strategy. And he knew just how to knock her down.

Kat pointed with the same hand she'd had up in the air moments ago. "Heartearth Dragon, attack with Dragon Canon Blast!"

A single motion of his hand, and Black Mist had a Trap Card up. Kat gasped. She'd already told Heartearth to attack!

"Oh crap. No Heartearth, stop the attack!"

But it was too late. No way Hearthearth could stop now. The attack smashed against the Trap Card, and with a blinding flash, both Duelists were sent flying back.

Kat's Life Points hit 50,while Black Mist's hit 200 only. The girl across from the smirking black being struggled to sit up.

"Damn it! How did that happen?" Kat stood up wobbly. Black Mist smirked.

"I warned you Kat! Now it's my turn to show you who's boss!" Black Mist let out a horrific laugh and raised his hand up. "I overlay these two monsters and XYZ Summon a copy of myself, Number 96, Black Mist!"

Kat watched in horror as the copy of Black Mist arose from the card. This was going to be close, but she knew she could win.

"Oh man. This may be hard, but I can still pull it off!"

"Yeah right!"

"What?"

"Only a Number can destroy a Number Kat!"

Kat raised an eyebrow. "Have you gone mental? Heartearth Dragon IS a Number!"

Black Mist cackled. "Fool! Heartearth is out of Overlay Units! That officially makes it an ordinary XYZ Monster!"

"No..." Kat went wide-eyed in fear. Black Mist smirked.

"I told you my victory was assured! Now Number 96, attack!"

Kat went flying backwards, her Life Points hitting 0. She chocked and attempted to stand, but could only hold herself on her hands and knees.

"Y-You won't g-g-get away with this! I-I-I won't let you get the N-N-Number...Ca-a-ards... uh..." Kat fainted onto the roof building. Black Mist chuckled.

"Pathetic girl, thinking you'd be able to win each and every time. I'll take that Number Card you have now." Heartearth Dragon was taken by the black being. He smirked and turned back to his classic Sludge Form, drifting away from the roof.

It was best he left before Kite and Hart decided Kat was gone too long and came after her.

Back at the house...

"Kite, I'm worried." Hart whispered. Kat had been gone now for three hours. At first, they thought maybe she'd just gone to hang out with her friends.

But then they realized she would've called first before. And she hadn't.

"I'm worried too Hart. And I think maybe we should go look for Kat. It's starting to get dark!" Kite stood from the couch and raced off, Hart and Orbital following right behind. The little robot transformed into a glider and hooked onto Kite's back, and once Hart was on top of him, he took off into the sky.

Heartland City's lights soon came into view. Hart stared around, looking for any sign of Kat. She could be anywhere. It was only when Orbital let out a beep did they know how close they were.

"M-Master Kite! Take a s-sharp left now!" Orbital commanded. Kite scowled, not liking being bossed around by a robot but doing it anyway. Hart pointed and shouted, "There! On that building! I see something!"

"I see it too." Kite refused to listen as Orbital rambled on about him going the wrong way. Hart cupped his mechanical mouth and hissed out a "Shut up before my brother cuts your circuits" as they landed on the roof.

They couldn't believe Kat was lying there, unconscious and hardly breathing.

"Kat!" Kite yelled and ran to Kat's side. He lifted her up and studied her. No broken bones, but there were some deep cuts. Maybe that's what knocked her out? They looked like they could make a person dizzy.

"Oh man." Hart gulped and stroked Kat's neon-blue bangs. She twitched, but didn't wake up.

Orbital gestured toward Kite. He sighed and handed Kat over to the robot, who held her gently before having the Tenjo brothers hang onto him. He took off, flying back to the cabin.

Kite kicked the door open. He'd left it unlocked just incase he needed easy access inside. Orbital raced in after him, Hart right behind and watching intently as Kat was placed on the couch.

"Kat..." Hart whispered. He helped Kite cover her with the blanket, then placed a hand on her shoulder. All three of them hoped she'd wake up and be okay.

Well, part of it was fulfilled.

Kat moaned and opened her eyes. She rolled over, staring at the Tenjo brothers and Orbital with her cat-green eyes. She sat up a bit, a confused look on her face.

"Where...am I?" Kat whispered, barely loud enough to be heard. Kite laughed. His girlfriend was something else sometimes.

"What do you mean? Silly Kat, you're at home!"

"H-Home? I have a home? And...who's Kat?"

"You're joking right?" Hart asked. Kat raised an eyebrow, then shook her head. "No. Who are you? In fact...who am I?"

Kite, Hart and Orbital were stunned.

"Oh, crap. This isn't good." Kite muttered.


	4. Chapter 4: Get a Jump on School, Again

Kite and Hart just stared at Kat as she slept. After she'd calmed down, they had left her alone to watch TV. She'd fallen asleep shortly after.

"I can't believe it. She can't remember anything." Hart whispered, clinging to Kite's arm. He nodded. This was not the outcome they had been expecting Kat to have with her. Even though she usually brought back weird problems, she'd never brought back amnesia with herself.

Kat rolled over in her sleep, groaning somewhat softly and kicking some of the blankets off on accident. Hart let go of Kite and took a few steps towards the sleeping girl. He gently took the blanket ends in his hands and pulled them back up closer to Kat. She stirred in response, but did not wake up.

"Kite I'm scared for Kat. She was a great Duelist and had many friends, plus a good education. If she can't remember anything, then how is she ever going to get back on track with her life?" Hart stared up at Kite with his golden eyes. They were filled with fear.

"I'm not entirely sure, kiddo. Hopefully her friends will help when we explain it to them."

"How are we going to do that?"

"We'll wake Kat up tomorrow at 5:45, have her get dressed, and we'll take her to school. Then the first person we find that is a friend of hers, we'll explain it to them and they'll spread the word. Easy."

"Easier said than done." Hart turned back to Kat and stared at her for a while longer before leaving and going upstairs to find her school uniform. Kite sighed and put a gentle hand on Kat's shoulder. She once again stirred, but didn't wake up.

Well, she was still a heavy sleeper. Guess that never changes in people.

Kite went ahead and walked upstairs as well. He went left twice and smiled when he saw Hart, who was rummaging through Kat's closet. He'd found everything except her skirt. Kite chuckled.

"Hart, try over here."

"Huh?"

"The drawer silly."

Hart rolled his eyes and walked over to the drawer Kite was pointing too. The blue-haired boy opened it and found the stack of pink skirts. He sighed in annoyance. Kite was always right about where Kat kept her things, it seemed.

"Okay, so you were right. Big deal." Hart grumbled an grabbed the skirt, then set it with the rest of Kat's uniform and shut the drawer. He turned back to Kite for approval, which he received, and then headed for their bedroom. Hart jumped on the bed, rolling himself in the covers as Kite walked into the room. "Are you gonna save me any of those, or are you going to be a blanket hog all night?"

"Just be quiet and come here."

"Pff." Kite chuckled and walked over to the side of the bed. He yanked some of the blankets from Hart's hand, then held his little brother close as they fell to sleep.

Hopefully, tomorrow would be somewhat easy.

The next morning...

Silence. Complete and utter silence. That was what Kat woke up to in the morning. Darkness surrounded her, and adding onto the quiet made the house seem all the more frightening to her. She sat up and looked around.

The only source of light was that of the street lamp shining through the window.

Kat shivered and wrapped the blankets around herself. She couldn't see anything, couldn't hear anything except the hypnotic tic-ticking of the clocks that littered the house. She wished there was more light. Then she'd be able to look at the clocks and figure out what time it was.

"Man...if I knew where the light switch was, then maybe this wouldn't be a problem." Kat whispered to herself. She felt like she knew where the switch was, but then again there was no way she could place it properly.

Especially if it was pitch-black everywhere except for one little section under the window.

Finally, after building up her courage, Kat stood up. As soon as she got to the floor, she got on her hands and knees and began crawling around. Once, she hit the recliner, but that was it before she found a wall that was away from the light. Kat stood fully now, and, sliding her hand up and down the wall, found the light switch eventually.

There was just one problem; there were three of them. Only one turned on these lights.

Kat sighed. She decided she'd flip them all and see what happened. The girl flipped the first switch. Nothing happened inside, but a small light outside flicked on. Kat flipped it down and tried the second.

Light flooded the room, making her shield her eyes for a moment. When she regained her sight, Kat smiled. She turned back to where the switches were. What was the third for?

Then again she didn't want to know.

Now that Kat could see, she took a look at the clock. It was 5:30. Early, but she felt like that was normal. Kat shrugged and decided to explore the house a little bit. She walked around a corner, only to find more darkness that led up the stairs. Kat walked up them slowly, then just sat on the edge of the top one.

"What're you doing?"

Kat nearly shrieked, but she covered her mouth before she could. She turned around. There was the small blue-haired boy from before.

"Nothing. Just exploring."

"Oh. Well hey, let's go downstairs. There's a TV down there, you know."

"Uh...yeah, sure let's go."

Kat followed Hart down the stairs again, then sat on the couch and curled in the blankets again. Hart smiled and held up a hanger. Kat's uniform was dangling from it.

"You're gonna need this for school." Hart said. Kat stared for a moment, then nodded as the small boy pointed to his left. "Bathroom, thataway," was all he said before Kat scurried off.

The clock hit 5:55. Kat came running out of the bathroom, smiling at Hart. Her hair was finally brushed out, so now she looked ready. Hart put her shoes down in front of her, which she slipped on.

"C'mon, we need to get you to school." Hart grabbed Kat's had as he said this. She cocked her head to the right.

"Hold on a second. Isn't there another person here? Taller than you, blond and teal hair. Where's he at?" Kat asked, making direct eye contact with Hart. He shrugged. "Kite told me if he wasn't awake before me to take you to school."

As they walked out the door, Kat couldn't help but wonder how she ever could've forgotten these two.

At school...

"Move it! Ah, sorry! Watch it!"

Yuma scurried around the corners of the school hallways. Nothing was going to stop him from getting to class on time today.

Scratch that. Nothing but Kat and Hart, who Yuma ran right into. He and Kat fell on top of one another. Hart fell a totally different direction, but watched from afar.

"Owwww..." Kat moaned and sat up. Yuma shook himself. "Oh, sorry Kat."

By now Kat had learned to respond to that. She smiled. "That's alright...uh... who is he?"

"That's Yuma." Hart said, helping Kat and Yuma to their feet. Yuma raised an eyebrow.

"Whad'ya mean, who am I? You know me Kat!"

"Uh, Yuma actually, she can't remember anything. She has serious amnesia."

"What? Amnesia? How'd she get it?"

"She was Dueling someone. They beat her bad, and when she woke up she couldn't remember anything."

Yuma stayed silent for a moment. Then, with a smile, he grabbed Kat's wrist. "Hey don't sweat it! You'll remember us all in a new way eventually. C'mon, let's go! We're almost late for class!"

Hart watched as Yuma scurried off with Kat. He sighed, thankful that this may be easier, but sorrowful for Kat at the same time.

After all, unless she found someone else, she'd probably get a new reputation of being late all the time like Yuma.


	5. Chapter 5: More Questions, More Answers

"Wait, so you mean she really can't remember anything?"

"Nope. Not a thing. At least, that's what Hart told me."

"That's not good!"

"You think?"

Kat listened as her friends bickered on about her current condition. She'd picked up on names pretty quickly. Yuma was now arguing with Tori about what to do about all this, while Cathy was having a meltdown. Her only friend that had been as much as a cat freak as her (Only not shown it quite like that) had lost all her memories of the times they did stuff together that involved cats.

"I think we should take her to a doctor!" Tori argued. Yuma shook his head in disapproval.

"No way! She'd be better off waiting for her memories to come back on their own! Besides, what's a doctor gonna do that she can't do herself?" Yuma yelled, crossing his arms.

"A doctor could provide a better explanation on how this even happened and possibly prescribe a prescription that may help her gain her memories back sooner and or easier!"

"One, Kat is perfectly capable of telling us what happened herself, and two, medicine doesn't fix every little problem!"

"Uh, guys?" Kat tried to speak up. She was really quiet, however, so there was no way anyone could've heard her. Tori and Yuma continued to argue as she sat there, annoyed by their actions. The brown and blue-haired girl stood up and put her hands in the air in anger. "Guys!"

This seemed to get their attention for a moment, but nothing more. Now Caswell and Bronk were involved there, trying to pry the now slapping and scratching pair appart. Kat had had enough. She stood on the table and got as loud as she could.

"GUYS!"

Yuma, Tori, Cathy, Bronk, Caswell and Flip whipped around to see Kat. She crossed her arms and jumped from the table, closing her eyes and shaking her head shamefully. When she reopened them, she pushed her glasses up a little bit and put her hands to her hips. "Honestly you guys. Is this how you treat every problem you have? With slapping and biting and stuff? Not the Hump Day spirit I'd been hoping for." she said, both mockery and shame in her voice. The group of six hung their heads low and shook them, but were stunned she'd picked up on Hump Day that quickly.

"Sorry Kat. Shoulda known that scolding gene of yours was still in you." Yuma muttered out. Kat shook her head, but took it as an apology anyway. She turned towards a sudden sound. Cathy was the first to notice her strange behavior.

"Kat? What's wrong?" Cathy ran up and put a hand on Kat's shoulder. Kat pointed. "There. I heard something, like a growl."

"Oh! Maybe there's a Duel going on!" Cathy jumped in joy and grabbed Kat by the wrist, then began to drag her away. Yuma let out a protestive "Hey!" but followed regardless with the others right behind him.

Cathy had been right. A Duel was going down in the school yard. It was taking place on the roof. Kat went wide-eyed as her Gazer Tattoo automatically slid across her left eye, turning it blue. At first, she couldn't be sure who was Dueling. But when she figured it out, she could not believe who it was. Neither could the others, in fact.

Kite stood on the roof, his Galaxy Eyes Photon Dragon swishing its massive tail in front of him. Kat thought she'd never seen a more beautiful creature, mainly because she couldn't remember, and stared in awe at the massive monster. For a moment they had made eye contact. Yuma, out of breath but finally caught up with the two girls, went wide-eyed as well.

"Wow...such a beautiful creature." Kat whispered. Flip laughed. "Maybe scary beautiful is the proper term." he said. Kat just shook her head, obviously disagreeing.

"No, beautiful is definitely the proper term. It's so amazing. Sparkly and strong...I wish I could Duel."

Yuma shot up in shock at this. "Kat, you can Duel! You're really good at it!"

Kat turned back to Yuma with a confused look. "Am I? I don't recall Yuma." -She turned back to the dragon now.-"Am I really a good Duelist? Doesn't seem to me like it would fit my personality..."

"That right there is the kind of nonsense I've missed from you." Caswell came up and patted Kat's back. She smiled, but did not make eye contact with him. "You are a fantastic Duelist! Or, were, rather now that you've lost your memories."

The brown and blue-haired girl stayed motionless as she watched Galaxy Eyes go into motion for the first time. She turned and began to wonder what the opponent would do. That's when she realized she didn't even know who the opponent was. Almost as if on cue, all seven of them turned and gasped at who they saw. And all at once, they yelled out his name in confusion.

"SHARK?!"

"Oh my..." Cathy whispered. Kat turned and stared around at her friends expressions. To her, this was just an ordinary Duel. But to them, this could be life or death for Shark. They knew Kite was a Number Hunter, they knew how dangerous he was. Kat didn't remember.

"Oh my what? What's the big deal?"

"The big deal Kat," Bronk began. "is that Kite is a Number Hunter! This could end in Shark's death!"

"How could a Duel possibly end in the death of another?" Kat asked, making eye contact with nothing in particular.

"Well, being a Number Hunter, he has the ability to steal the soul and Number Card of his defeated opponents!" Tori said, swaying back and forth. "By doing that he can kill people!"

Now Kat was confused. She remembered earlier today they'd mentioned something about her being a Number Hunter as well. Did that mean she also had the capability of stealing souls?

"I don't understand. You all fear Kite because of what he can do, and yet you're all standing right next to me. Don't I have the same capability?"

Everyone froze for a second. Finally, Cathy spoke.

"Kat, you do have the same ability, but you A: Would never hurt us and B: Can't remember how to use it. We have no reason to be afraid of you." Cathy and Kat made direct eye contact now. The brown and blue-haired girl nodded and shut her eyes momentarily before returning her attention to the roof. Looks like Kite had won this round. The others in the background gasped in shock. Kat could hear their footsteps start to thunder past her. She held her arms up.

"Wait."

Everyone stopped. At first, they were confused. But when they glanced up at Kite, they understood.

The two Number Hunters were smirking at one another, silently speaking to one another. Kat watched as Kite took off with Orbital. She saw Shark get up and, rather than go walk down the stairs, jump off the roof. No one made any sudden movements as he came walking toward them.

"Didn't know I had an audience during that." Shark said, taking his Duel Gazer off. "Otherwise I wouldn't have gone so easy on your boyfriend."

Kat jolted up in confusion. Quietly, she asked, "Boyfriend?"

The others just sighed. Yesterday was a regular Tuesday. Well, now it was obvious that would never happen again, starting today.


	6. Chapter 6: THE MEMORY THEIF REVEALED!

The sun was setting slowly over the horizon, painting a beautiful aura of colors into the sky. Kat smiled and looked around. In the forest, it was the perfect background scenery. Had she brought a camera with her, she may have taken a picture. But Hart had insisted on leaving it at home. So she hadn't taken it from the coffee table, where it was charging.

Birds tweeted in the distance. Kat looked up at the ones that were flying overhead. Red ones, blue ones, green ones, there were lots of them. She smiled and continued to walk.

Footsteps were soon heard right behind her. That was odd. From what Hart had told her, no one else ever came into the forest because no one else lived in it. Kat whipped around. She couldn't see anything, but she could hear the footsteps coming closer. The brown and blue-haired girl readied herself with a stick, which she held as though it were a sword, and kept her eyes ahead of her.

She didn't have time to react before both herself and Yuma were on the ground in a ball.

"Ah! Yuma! Get off of me!" Kat yelled, tossing Yuma off herself in the process. The pink and black-haired boy hit the ground with a thud, then looked up at Kat with innocent crimson eyes. The cat-green ones that stared back were not so innocent, rather angered. She scowled and helped Yuma to his feet. "What are you even doing in these woods?"

"I was just, uh...taking a walk."

"Bull crap. What were you really doing?"

"Okay fine. I was following you home."

Kat looked stunned. She raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms. "Why?"

"Because, I worry about you. Something could happen to you."

"Uh..." Kat felt herself blushing now. "Well that's sweet of you Yuma but I don't need constant protection. I can take care of myself." She turned away and continued to walk. Yuma stood there for a second in a frozen state, thinking of how Kat had managed to knock Shark around a bit earlier, and debating on whether he should follow her or not.

He began to follow her anyway.

They wound through the forest, treading down the path Kat had made earlier today when she went to school. Soon they were in a clearing, where the cabin was. Kat walked onto the porch and opened the door. She turned, staring at Yuma. Leaving the door open, she walked inside. Yuma gulped and followed, closing the door in the process.

"So Kat, is it okay if I stay here for a while?" Yuma asked, keeping his eye on Kat as she walked to the kitchen. She shrugged and opened the fridge, grabbing two grape sodas and tossing one to Yuma. (Thank god he caught it) "I suppose so," was all she said before shrugging, opening the can and taking a large drink.

"KAT!"

Kat whipped around and shrieked as Hart jumped on her in a hug. Grape soda went flying everywhere, staining everything it touched light purple. She giggled and pulled away long enough to put the can down, then lifted Hart into the air. "Next time, make sure I don't have a soda in my hand."

"Whatever." Hart rolled his eyes and put his head on Kat's shoulder. Yuma smiled. It was no wonder Kite stayed around Kat. She and Hart got along perfectly do to her childish nature, so it was pretty perfect.

Yuma smiled again and sat on the couch, flicking through the TV channels. Kat let Hart down, who scampered off to play with Yuma, and went to go find Kite. With a smile, Hart began to try taking the remote from Yuma's hand. He held it up high, out of his reach, and continued to flick through the channels. "Wait until I find something decent to watch." he said. Hart crossed his arms and growled. "Fine"

Bouncing sounds were soon heard from the stairs, followed by semi-rapid footsteps. Kat came whooshing around the corner, yelling "MAKE ROOM ON THE COUCH!" and barely giving Hart and Yuma enough time to move before she came crashing down on it. They all watched as Kite came around the same corner, staring at them as if they'd become ghosts and didn't know it. He walked over to Kat and lifted her up. "What have I told you about jumping on the couch?"

"Not to do it and it's bad for the furniture. Blah blah blah." Kat stuck out her tongue and made a raspberry noise, rolling her eyes doing so. "I remember a time you wouldn't have given a crap."

"Who cares?" Hart asked. "Let her have her fun, brother. She's just being a kid."

Kite glared at Hart."You are the kid in the house, Hart. Not Kat. She's thirteen years old for crying out loud!"

"Gaha!" Kat put her finger to Kite's lips. "Thirteen and a half years old. Get it right or don't say it at all." She watched as Kite rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"Fine, thirteen and a half years old."

"There ya go. Now please do us all a favor and let me down."

Yuma and Hart watched as Kite put Kat down on her feet. She brushed herself off and put her hands on her hips in a sassy fashion. "Thhhhhhank you." She hissed it out like a snake and walked away. Hart let out a wolf whistle. "Sheesh Kite, you threw her off the edge this time."

"Me?! She shouldn't jump on the furniture like that! Give me a break Hart, she's thirteen~"

"And a half."

"I was getting to that. She's thirteen and a half! Seriously, she should act like a mature adult, not a little kid."

"Well what's so wrong with being a little kid?!" Hart wailed, crossing his arms and getting in Kite's face. "Huh, huh, huh? What's so wrong about it, hm?"

Yuma hung his head as Astral appeared. The floating figure had a very fearful look on his face. "Yuma, this is important. You must listen."

"What?"

"There are more memories lingering around the key."

"Okay, so? Isn't that a good thing?"

"They are not mine, though. They are Kat's. And a certain black Number has them in his possession."

Yuma went wide-eyed. He dropped his jaw and ran to Kite and Hart, pulled them away from their bickering and forced them to listen. "Found Kat's memories, but you aren't going to believe who has them."

Kite rolled his eyes. "If you want to shock us, you need to say it now."

"Black Mist has them."

Hart and Kite went wide-eyed now. This was not going to end well.


	7. Chapter 7: Trapped Within the Key

Kat twirled her fork around her plate, twisting the stained noodles and meatballs around it. The fork made a constant scraping noise as she twirled it, which was going to drive her insane unless the TV got a little louder.

Like that was going to happen.

The four of them (Five actually if you count Astral.) had gathered at the table to have dinner. Something very important needed to be discussed, they had said. Kat had helped Kite and Hart make spaghetti, being the one to put the sauce and the meatballs in it. Yuma had grabbed all the plates and forks and things, setting them all on the table and then proceeding to go back to the TV.

"So..."

Everyone looked up at Kat as she spun another glop of spaghetti around her fork and slurped it up. "What exactly is so important?"

"Well, we figured out who stole your memories." Yuma informed, copying Kat's previous motion. Sauce splattered around a few places, barely missing Kite's laptop. He scooted it back and mumbled something that was incomprehensible before turning back to Kat.

"Who?"

"A guy called Black Mist. He's really super evil and crap. Not the guy to mess with really. You Dueled him a few days ago and he won. Then he stole Heartearth Dragon from you, along with your memories and fled back into the key."

"Ehh, that's just great."

"You're telling me?"

"Yes I am."

The others returned their attention to their plates. Kat on the other hand put a meatball on the edge of her fork. She made sure no one was watching, then bent the fork back a bit in her hand.

Wait for it Kat, wait for it. Kat told herself. She aimed it so it would hit more directly and make a bigger mess, then bent the fork back more.

Wait for it...

She smirked.

And...FIRE!

SPLAT!

"Oh ewww, that's disgusting!" Yuma wailed, shaking the meatball off his forehead. Kite and Hart gasped. Kat suppressed her urge to laugh as she stared at the shocked faces around the room.

Kite scowled. He turned to Kat, obviously not pleased, and growled at her. She jolted up and shook her head, pointed at Hart and said, "It was him!"

"Whaaaat?!" Hart nearly screamed it. He closed his eyes for a moment and pointed at Kat. "She did it! How could I have been able to hit Yuma square in the forehead if I'm sitting right here? It would've gotten all over his hair!"'

Silence swept over the area. Yuma stood and went to get a towel, Astral right behind. Kat couldn't keep it in anymore. She started to laugh like crazy, falling from her chair in the process. Hart watched as Kite stood and grabbed Kat from the floor, lifting her by the waist again and going upstairs.

"Aw c'mon Kite, that was funny! I couldn't help myself!" Kat said it in between laughter. Kite was not pleased. He shook his head and stood in Kat's room with her.

"It was not funny Kat. You're not a little kid, do you understand me?"

"But it was funny. I know I'm not a little kid Kite but..."

"But what?"

"But there's nothing wrong with being a little kid. I like to be me. Then again, I don't expect you to understand. You're so...adultish."

Kite raised an eyebrow. This was one of those rare times Kat was actually talking like she should. Problem was, she wasn't making much sense. "Whad'ya mean Kat?"

"I mean, you're always so proper. You want to have everything your own way because you're the oldest in the house. If you were childish, like me, you'd find things like that funny and this wouldn't be happening right now. Besides, sometimes being childish has its perks." Kat turned away and walked into her room, sliding the door closed. Kite sighed and opened it enough to step inside. There sat the goofball, on the bed and texting on her iPod.

"What perks?"

"Oh, let's see. Sometimes you have to think like a little kid to get out of the toughest situations. Like, you could try throwing a knife into a locked cage door and unlocking it rather than try to knock the key down. Even if you did succeed in knocking the key down, most likely you'd have nothing to pull it in with. So there goes a perfectly good knife and your only way out."

Kite was stunned. He was wide-eyed as he sat on Kat's bed. "Well, that actually made sense. I'm not sure I would've thought of that."

"Exactly." Kat said, smiling up at the blond next to her. She put her iPod on charger, then stood up and walked away. Kite followed right behind.

This was going to be a long night, he just knew it.

Later...

"Ehhh..."

Kat rolled over and groaned in her sleep. She opened her eyes and stared around. Moonlight shone through the window, cutting through most of the darkness. The girl looked around and stared at the darkness. It was so still.

And slowly, it began to bend.

"What the?" Kat sat up and looked at it. Was she still sleeping? Darkness didn't bend, did it?

Heck no.

The darkness wrapped around Kat. She tried to shriek, but she couldn't. Something was covering her mouth, so she couldn't even yell.

"You think you can get away that easily? I'll have you know Kat, you can't escape easily. I'm going to destroy your memories. And then I'm going to destroy you."

Kat struggled against the grip around her. It was snaking up her, sending shivers up her spine and making the urge to scream even greater.

"K-Kite, Hart! H-help me-e!" Kat finally choked it up and managed to scream as well. She struggled against the black around her, shrieking in terror. Her glasses went flying off the dresser when she grabbed at it, making them fall to the ground and shatter the lenses from the impact.

"Hush little kitty. With you in my possession it'll be loads of fun." Black Mist cupped Kat's mouth with a clawed hand. He smirked, and without a sound, he vanished with Kat.

Now he had Kat. Now he had her memories. All he had to do now was destroy them both, and it would be as if she never even existed.

"Finally. Once I destroy Kat, there will be only two Number Hunters again. I'll wipe them away and soon I'll have the power of all the Numbers! This is all too easy!" Black Mist cackled. Kat was unconscious and tied to part of the key Yuma wore.

All he had to do now was destroy her and her memories.


	8. Chapter 8: Great, Now Everyone's Trapped

Okay so, I'm taking a short break from posting chapters for a while. This is the last one for now. Starting today and until this coming Sunday, I will be taking a break from posting new chapters. Don't worry, I'll be back I swear, but I'm taking this week off because I'm trying to download Pokemon X and let's just say that dial-up and downloading don't go well together. Anyway, I'll keep writing new chapters, just not posting them and hopefully I'll be done or close to done with this story by the end of the week. But enough of my babbling, onto the chapter!

Astral looked around at all the floating Number Cards that contained his memories. He had been watching TV while Yuma slept, but then he felt like there was another presence inside the key.

That's why he was wandering around.

"I sense another presence. But where is it?" Astral wondered aloud as he floated around. It was only when he heard groaning did he actually get concerned. He flew towards it, and was beyond stunned when he found out who was making it.

"Kat?"

Kat opened her eyes and groaned again. She stared at Astral from where she sat. Her cat-green eyes twinkled in despair as she struggled against the black chains that held her by her wrists.

"I'm so dizzy. That guy...that guy is insanely powerful." Kat whispered it, just barely loud enough for Astral to hear. He floated down next to her and touched her shoulder.

"Kat, are you alright?"

"I think so. Just really dizzy. A black version of you captured me. Eh, he has my memories doesn't he?"

"Yes, I am afraid he does. But I am not sure how to free you from these. Only he can. That or a Number Card, but I do not think I could summon yours."

"Don't worry about it Astral. Maybe the others could help me...?"

Astral nodded. "Perhaps they could. I shall wake Yuma and tell him of the news." The blue being was gone before Kat could respond. She just nodded instead and looked up weakly.

"Good luck," she muttered, staring at where Astral had once been floating. She just hoped that Yuma would actually listen for once.

Seconds later...

"Astral, what is so important?"

"Kat. She has been captured by Black Mist."

"WHAT?!" Yuma shot out of the bed and hit the floor with a thud. His crimson eyes stared up at the mismatched ones that stared at him. "She got captured by Black Mist?! Ah! Astral we gotta do something!"

"The others could help, could they not?"

"Well yeah but I can't go around town at..." -he turned to the clock for a moment- "3:30 in the morning! They'd kill me!"

"That us a chance you will have to take. Besides, if you just explain it to them, they will be okay with it, correct?"

"Um..." Yuma sat there in thought for a moment, then nodded and stood up. "Yeah that'll work. Now let's go find them."

They raced down the hall, storming into Kite's room and flipping the switch. Kite and Hart growled at the sudden brightness and sat up. Obviously they weren't happy.

"What is the meaning of this Yuma?" Kite asked, glaring at the pink and black-haired boy that stood next to the switch. "Turn the light off and go back to sleep."

"But this is important! Kat got captured by Black Mist!"

"WHAT?!" Hart screamed it and jumped out of the bed, not bothering to stop and change from his PJ's as he raced out of the room. Kite slipped his jacket on, but that was it before he followed them.

The front door flew open, and they darted out. Orbital bounded after them, changing to motorcycle mode and speeding away when Kite and Hart jumped on. Yuma ran through the forest with a flashlight, going straight until he saw the highway. Perfect. Just past this was Tori's house.

"Tori Tori Tori!" Yuma yelled it quickly, banging on Tori's window. He kept at it until her light flicked on and the window opened. There she stood, with a very annoyed face.

"What Yuma? It's 3:45 in the morning. What do you want?"

"Kat's been captured by Black Mist."

Tori's orange eyes went wide, and she jumped out of the window, following Yuma and Astral as they ran throughout Heartland City to find the others. Next on the list was Cathy's house.

Cats meowed as the two ran into Cathy's yard. Yuma ran up to a tree and began climbing it, then balanced on the limb as he opened the bedroom window.

The window flew open, causing Yuma to fall from the tree limb. He landed on the ground with a thud next to Tori, and seconds later, and agitated Cathy peered out the open window. "Will someone please tell me why you're waking me from my required cat-nap at 4:00 in the FREAKING MORNING?!" Cathy demanded, crossing her arms in anger.

"Gah...Cathy seriously...this is important." Yuma said, sitting up. Cathy raised an eyebrow, as if to say "Get on with it."

So Yuma and Tori got on with it. In complete unison, they yelled, "Kat's been captured by Black Mist!"

A yowl emitted from Cathy's throat. With a single leap, she came flying from the window, landing on the ground with grace. She had an angered expression on her face again as she grabbed the others by the wrists and began running away. Yuma and Tori let out yelps of shock as their friend went speeding around the corner, flying across the road and racing in the direction of motorcycle sounds.

"Cathy! Let go of us!" Yuma yelled, struggling against her grip. Cathy shook her head. "You two would never be able to keep up. Besides, we're almost there." Just as Yuma and Tori were about to protest again, Cathy stopped running. She stood there and blinked in amusement. "Told you."

Well she'd been right. There was Kite, tugging on the back of Caswell's shirt, and Shark, who was holding Flip by his shirt collar. Both were struggling, but after Yuma blurted out the situation, they stopped and simply agreed to come along.

"Alright, what do we have to do to get inside that key?" Shark asked, pointing to Yuma's key. He shrugged. "I have no idea. Maybe Astral knows?"

Tori suddenly let out a shrill scream, followed by a horrified yowl from Cathy. Everyone turned and watched in horror as the darkness around them shifted and grabbed the two girls. It soon flew backwards, gripping all the others as well. Hart cried out and gripped onto Kite for dear life as they vanished into the key.

"Ow! Hey not so hard!" Flip whined, staring around at everything as they hit the ground. All of them were doing that. Suddenly, the darkness flooded over them again. Instead of yanking on them, however, it took the form of Astral. Yuma gasped.

Black Mist had shown himself.

"Well well well, what have I got here? Looks like a bunch of desperate kids trying to save a brainless Kat. Oh well, you can try, but it won't do you much good." Black Mist cackled, then vanished.

And slowly, the ground beneath the group began to crack.


	9. Chapter 9: One Tortured, One Escaped

NEW CHAPTER WHOO-HOO! My game is doing fantastic, it's at 75% right now. This means I'll just let the rest of it download at school and I'll be able to get new chapters such as this up! Anywaaaaaaaay, enjoy!

The cracks continued to get larger as they stared at them. One of them had split the sides, but it wasn't deep yet. They had to make a decision on what to do, back out or go in.

It was chosen for theme.

Hart let out a terrified scream, followed by Yuma and Shark yelping as the ground beneath them crumbled. Cathy shrieked as the small part of land she had been standing on faded away, causing her to tumble in, followed by a startled Astral, who'd dove in attempting to rescue them.

"NO!" Tori screamed it, attempting to catch Cathy as she fell. Caswell, Flip and Kite just stared at her as she backed up to where she had been standing. This wasn't good. Black Mist had wanted them separated. It would make it harder for them to find Kat that way.

"Whad'ya know, the first thing that happens is we get separated." Flip rolled his eyes and started to walk away. Caswell and Tori followed, leaving Kite to stare into the crack momentarily before he followed them. Now he had to rescue Kat and Hart.

Fantastic.

XxXxXxXxXx

"GAHHHH!" Yuma yelled it as he hit the ground. Shark came flying down, landing right on top of him. Cathy tumbled onto both, then shrieked as Hart landed on top of her. The pile of four bolted up, taking in all of their surroundings. The sky was dark, navy blue, with small meteors that dotted it. The ground was light, baby blue with red, purple, yellow and green swirls. It represented Astral World, Yuma realized.

"So, how the hell are we gonna get out of here?" Shark asked, looking around. Yuma found it odd that even though it was 4:12 now, the purplette was dressed in his usual attire, black pants, mahogany shirt, and the purple jacket that matched his white shoes.

"I have no idea." Yuma admitted. Astral shrugged. "Neither do I. This is a part of the key that I am not familiar with."

"Great." Cathy sighed and turned away, walking around in circles. Hart followed her, trying to kill his boredom. They continued to walk like that for about five minutes before plopping down on the galaxy-based floor.

Yuma growled and sat down as well. This wasn't going to go too smoothly. Shark watched as Astral flew up a little bit, then floated back down. Even he couldn't fly back up to the surface, and this was his key! That really said something.

XxXxXxXx

Bright lights flashed in front of her eyes. Kat stared in agony as they became brighter, then went dimmer, and continued in a pattern like that. Her neon-blue bangs covered her eyes for her as she closed them, looking away. Kat just couldn't stand it anymore.

Cackling soon rang through the area. Kat jerked up, staring at the lights as they got brighter once again. Black Mist soon showed himself, a smirk crossing his lips as he stared at his captive.

"I see you're finally awake Kat."

"Shut up."

"Right, like I'm really gonna listen to you. You're powerless while you're tied up like that, and there's no way you could possibly-"

"I said, shut the hell up!"

"Hmph, such language!" Black Mist seemed stunned for once as Kat glared up at him. He hadn't expected her to be so assertive.

But then again, it was Kat he was dealing with.

"Well whatever. I'll have you know the others are pointlessly trying to find you. Like they'll succeed. I've split them up and now you're all screwed." Black Mist let out a cackle and approached Kat. His dusk colored tentacles wrapped around her waist, and he floated closer to her. He stroked her cheek, causing the blue and brown-haired girl to flinch and growl. The black being chuckled and slithered away. Kat shuddered.

"Ewww. What a creep." She shifted uncomfortably and watched as some of the lighted areas grew brighter than others. One in particular seemed to constantly grow brighter, and it would get closer to Kat every chance it got. She thought that was strange, but she shrugged it off like usual.

The only thing to do was stare around at everything. Kat just sighed and did so, looking at the floor, at the sky, at anything she could see clearly. She would be keeping an eye on the single light, however.

There was something about it. Kat thought she should know it from somewhere. She just couldn't place it.

Suddenly, the ground began to crack around her. Slight, little cracks that weren't deep whatsoever. Kat gulped. This wasn't good.

And from afar, Kat could hear the insane cackling of Black Mist.

XxXxXxXxXx

A roar ripped through the area. Black Mist just smirked as he approached Astral's little wall of Numbers, where Heartearth Dragon and Kat's memories were being held captive. Heartearth let out another roar of anger as the black being that held it captive continued to come closer.

"Let me guess, you would like to know what's wrong with Kat? Well I'll tell you. She can't remember a thing! Tragic really, I wonder who was responsible... oh that's right, it was me." Black Mist simply laughed. Heartearth Dragon was not happy at all. It smacked itself against the small enclosure it was in, but was only able to make a dent.

Another roar ripped throughout the area. Black Mist had to cover his ears in order to shut it out. Heartearth smashed its great body against its enclosure once again, only this time, cracked it.

BANG!

The crack became a small hole.

BANG!

Now it was a large hole.

SMASH!"

Glass shards flew off in all directions. Heartearth roared and took off. Black Mist growled, attempted to grab the massive dragon with his tentacles, but missed. He scowled, but soon shrugged it off.

"Pf, minor set-back. So what if Heartearth freed itself? Not like it'll ever find Kat." Black Mist cackled again and turned, walking away smoothly.

It was nearly time for him to put an end to Kat, once and for all.


	10. Chapter 10: Freedom has its Consequences

Astral continued at top speed, leaving the others breathless as they tried to keep up. Yuma had to stop twice before Shark ended up just grabbing him and running off with him on his back. Ever since Astral had thought he'd felt another presence, he'd been racing off in whatever direction he thought felt right, basically forcing the others to follow him. Now they were lost, tired and beyond worried for Kat.

"GAHHHH!" Hart yelled it, tripping over something and smacking onto the floor. He gritted his teeth and stood up, holding his arm in pain and staring in awe at what he'd tripped over. A deep crack. Cathy raised an eyebrow, obviously curious of how the obstacle got there. Just like with the one that had brought them all down here, it appeared out of nowhere.

Shark let out a growl of annoyance. Everyone stared as it got a bit larger, seemingly by the second. Finally, Astral shook himself and ran off again. Cathy rolled her eyes and tailed after him, followed by Hart, Shark and Yuma. They wound themselves around more corners, spiraled up and down places, and eventually came crashing into one another when Cathy came to a sudden stop. (She's forgotten she would go right through Astral.)

"Oww...oh geez. Cathy, warn us before you stop like that next time." Hart moaned and sat up, rubbing his head and trying to force his eyes to stop spinning.

More cracks could be seen in the distance from where they stood. Astral apparently could see something that was even farther away from them, so he'd stopped. And that was when Cathy had stopped, causing the others to smack into each other. They watched as the blue spirit continued cautiously, following the semi-deep cracks. Not one word was spoken as everyone else followed.

Soon, groaning could be heard. It wasn't from anybody in the group, that much was obvious. Where was is coming from then?

The only way to find out was to follow it.

"This way." Astral motioned with his hand and sped off. The others followed right behind. Hart wasn't sure why, but he felt like soon, they'd find Kat and bring her home safely.

He just knew it.

Meanwhile...

The cracks continued to get larger. It was almost as if every step her friends took as they searched for her, the bigger and deeper they got. Kat shuddered. She was seriously creeped out by all this. No earthquake was occurring, nor were there any machines that could do such a thing. How was it happening?

That was a question Kat wasn't sure she wanted to find out the answer to.

The blue and brown-haired girl shuddered again and stared around at everything. The lights which continued to grow brighter, the cracks that continued to get larger, the cuffs that continued to squeeze her wrists. Kat snarled and attempted to escape again. It was no use.

She was stuck.

"That's just great. Absolutely fantastic." -She looked up at the ceiling now- "I hope they get here soon. Otherwise, there may be nothing left to save."

Now silence swayed over the area. Kat felt awkward, not only being alone, but being so close to death without her memories. She swayed back and forth nervously, hanging her head when she stopped and staring at the swirling, cracking floor.

Even the cracks looked like they were swirling. Kat was hallucinating. She couldn't believe it. Swirling cracks? Next thing she knew she'd be seeing a dragon.

Boy couldn't she have been more right.

A shadow swooped over Kat. She stared up at the ceiling as everything began to distort. The dragon landed right in front of her. Kat squinted, attempting to remember. She recognized the dragon very easily, but she just couldn't figure out from where exactly. Of course, that would be a challenge until she got her memories back.

IF she got her memories back.

The dragon snarled and dropped down next to Kat. It was silent as it slashed the cuffs around her wrists, and seemed to be smiling at her when she looked up.

"You...saved me?" Kat asked, standing up and stretching herself from the scrunched position she'd been in for such a long time. The dragon put a clawed paw on her shoulder, causing the blue and brown-haired girl to flinch upon contact.

_Of course I saved you, Kat._

Kat just about screamed. This think could talk! What the crap?

"A talking dragon? Now I know I'm hallucinating."

_You're not hallucinating. Oh that's right, you can't remember. Well back when you were a great Duelist, I was your ace card. Maybe I can still help you escape._

"How?"

_I can lead you to the others._

Kat felt a smile crossing her lips. She nodded, then froze as she heard footsteps rapidly coming in their direction. Heartearth turned its massive head towards the noise, but did not get in any battle stance.

Never before in their either of their lives had they been so happy.

Astral, Cathy, Hart, Shark and Yuma came running around the corner, almost blinding themselves by the light but running in anyway. Kat let out a startled, let happy shriek as Hart jumped on her. Cathy screamed in joy, but soon shut up as she heard cackling.

All of them jerked up in shock. There floated Black Mist, only he was not alone. Caswell, Flip, Kite and Tori were wrapped in his tentacles, as we're Kat's memories. The black being let out an insane laugh and smirked.

"I may not be able to destroy Kat, but it doesn't matter! I can destroy these guys and her memories instead and still succeed!" Black Mist called from where he floated, cackled, then flew off at top speed. Kat felt her eye twitch, then snarled.

"Black Mist! Get back here you coward!" The blue and brown-haired girl shrieked in anger and raced after him, before anyone could react. They followed, however, and gasped in shock when they stopped suddenly at a cliff.

There floated Black Mist, right over the gap of swirling floor, holding Kat's memories right over. The others were unconscious an on the floor. Kat shook her head in a threatening fashion and made direct eye contact with Black Mist. "Don't do it," she growled.

"Too late!"

Her memories tumbled right on into the swirls. Kat screamed in shock. "NO!" She lunged at them, but was jerked backwards by Heartearth, who shook its head. Kat looked up with teary eyes before she began to cry. Black Mist on the other hand smirked.

"You're useless now Kat." The black being simply laughed, then vanished. That just left Kat to continue crying. It was official.

Kat's memories no longer existed.


	11. Chapter 11: A Memorial Battle, Part 1

Yuma glanced over at Kat. She looked like she was about to start crying again. It had been a whole week since Black Mist had erased the girl's memories, and she hadn't been fairing too well. Kat now elevated her head on her right hand, while her left hand tried to write the answers to her test. It was no use, though. She just couldn't focus on it enough.

"Kat..." Yuma whispered it so lowly she hardly even heard. Kat glanced up, then just allowed her pencil to drop. Her gaze never left Yuma's as she shrugged. During the same week, she hadn't spoken one word. Not even to Kite or Hart, which really said something.

"C'mon Kat, don't be so down in the dumps. I know this is bad, but I'm really sure we can fix it."

"H-How?"

Kat's voice was tiny and frail, but audible. Yuma was taken aback, having not heard her talk for a week straight. He just smiled and took out a small piece of paper, then wrote down his plan and continued on his test without a word. Kat took it, skimmed over it, then gasped in a quiet voice.

A sly smile crossed Kat's lips as she put the note away. She lifted her pencil again, stared at it, then placed it on the paper an began to actually work on her test. For once, she meant it when she thought Yuma was a genius.

XxXxXxXx

The breeze fluttered by gently, causing Kat's hair and the skirt of her dress to whip around gracefully. She, Kite and Hart were standing outside, waiting for Yuma and Astral to arrive. The trio had been standing outside for nearly an hour now, but it was Yuma they were waiting on. He was never on time for anything. Kat glanced down at her Deck Box. A small, golden glow flashed in it for a second before diminishing.

Kite glanced at Kat's iPod for the time. 3:55. He growled and locked the device, then slid it into his pocket and crossed his arms in an impatient fashion. "This is taking way too long. Where the hell is Yuma at?"

"How should I know?" Kat asked, turning back to the blond and teal-haired behind her. She blinked a few times, then turned back around. In the distance, two figures were coming at them rapidly. Kat squinted, then smiled when she recognized the figures as Yuma and Astral. Finally, they were here.

Yuma bolted up the side of the hill, skidded to a stop and panted heavily as he stared at Kat. She wasn't too happy. "You're late."

"Save the lecture, Kat. Here. Put your fingers around it. Astral will do the rest." Yuma held up the Emperor's Key. It shimmered and sparkled in the rays of the now setting sun. Kat blinked, then put her fingers around it. She motioned for Kite and Hart to do the same, which they did. Yuma nodded. "There ya go."

Astral floated over and touched the key as well. A bright, blue light emitted from it, causing them to shut their eyes. It engulfed them quickly. When they reopened their eyes, there they stood, inside the key.

"Nice. Now, where's that troublesome Black Mist?" Kat stared around. A golden light blasted from her Deck Box, and before she knew it, Heartearth Dragon was in front of them all. It let out a piercing roar before it began looking around too. Astral smiled. "I see. So Heartearth Dragon has a bond with you that allows it to do this."

"Yup." The cat-green eyes stared up at Heartearth. It seemed to be smiling as it lifted Kat, Hart, Kite and Yuma onto itself. Astral floated up after them as Heartearth took off.

"So where are we headed?" Hart called from where he sat. Kat turned back and shrugged. "Not sure."

"We are headed wherever Heartearth Dragon thinks Black Mist is." Astral answered. Heartearth Dragon roared in response, then halted suddenly as cackling made its way through the area. Black sludge began to form around on the ground. It slowly transformed into a black form of Astral, then smirked. Kat glared.

Black Mist.

"What are you doing back here? Really want to be destroyed that badly?" Black Mist asked in a mocking tone. Kat jumped off Heartearth, as did everyone else, and shook her head.

"No. I'm here because I know there's a way for you to give me my memories back. You didn't really erase them. You just locked them away."

"And just how do you think you're going to get me to unlock them?"

"I challenge you to a head-to-head battle against my Heartearth Dragon. If I win, you have to unlock my memories."

"If you loose?"

"Then you can do what you want to me."

Silence swept over the area. Finally, Black Mist smirked and nodded. "Sounds fair to me. Let's get this started."

Kat suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder. She glanced up, then stared at Heartearth Dragon.

_Are you sure you'd like to do this?_

"Yes."

_Alright then_. Heartearth Dragon growled, but nodded. The black being ahead of it transformed to his true form, then readied himself. Kat stood in a confident motion and smirked.

The battle had begun.


	12. Chapter 12: A Memorial Battle, Part 2

"Attack!"

Heartearth Dragon roared and fired its attack at Black Mist. They had set up this battle kind of like a Duel, both starting out with 4000 Life Points and taking turns attacking. Whoever was knocked out first was the loser. (For the Pokemon fans, this should sound familiar!) The only major difference was that Trap and Spell Cards were banned, as were Special Abilities. Heartearth and Black Mist had both discarded their Overlay Units at the beginning just to be sure it was fair.

As of right now, it seemed neither of them were winning. Even with Heartearth's Dragon Canon Blast successfully hitting Black Mist, it only dulled his Life Points down to 2000, matching his opponent's equally. It seemed that each attack was at the same power.

"Not bad. Not impressive either, however. Now, my turn!" Black Mist's attack came flying right at Heartearth and Kat. The blue and brown-haired girl shrieked as she and the dragon went flying backwards, hitting the ground with a smack. Kat groaned and sat up, staring at Heartearth Dragon. It sat up and howled as their Life Points dropped all the way down to 100.

Man, if we don't get in gear soon, this will be such an epic fail. Kat thought this as Heartearth took the opportunity to attack. Direct hit once again.

And once again, their Life Points were equal.

"Hah! This is grand! In only a few seconds, you will be my little puppet!" Black Mist laughed maniacally. Kat glared. The guy was busy laughing at whatever he thought was so funny. No one ever said that they couldn't attack one another two times in a row, now did they?

Nope. Kat smirked and threw her hand up, then let the words just tumble out of her mouth.

"Heartearth Dragon! Attack with Dragon Canon Blast!"

"WHAT?!"

The laughter stopped altogether as Heartearth roared, sending the attack flying straight at Black Mist. Before he could even react, he was flying high in the air. Seconds after he hit the ground, losing consciousness for a few minutes. Kat squealed in happiness and jumped on Heartearth Dragon as Black Mist's Life Points smacked down to zero.

"Damn, how is that possible?" Black Mist groaned as he reawakened, then growled. Now he remembered that he had no choice but to unlock and return Kat's memories to her. The black being scowled, then stood and transformed into his black Astral form. With a grunt, Black Mist floated over and ripped part of the ground away, taking out one of the glowing orbs that were littered around it. He just rolled his eyes and tossed it at Kat. "Catch."

"Nya!" Kat squealed it as she caught the orb. With a flash, it vanished, and soon she could remember everything. A smile soon crossed Kat's lips. She quickly changed it to a smirk and stared directly at Black Mist. "You do realize now that I can kill you easily, right?"

"Wrong. Kat, you and I both know you hold a very deep secret from everybody. If it were to leak out somehow...well I'm afraid it wouldn't be so good for you, now would it?"

Kat froze now. She found her eye to be twitching at the moment. The blue and brown-haired girl growled ad attempted to tackle Black Mist, but dove past on accident. She tumbled to the ground and shook herself off. "Don't you DARE tell them one word."

"Oh don't worry, I wouldn't say a peep! Unless, that is, if you decide to attack. Then I'll just knock it over like you do cans." Before any of them could react, Black Mist had vanished. Kat was not amused by that. She wanted to kill that freak. Deciding there would probably be no second chance, she instead jumped up and pounced on Kite. Never before had she been so happy. Hart just smiled, as did Yuma and Astral.

"C'mon, let's go back home." Hart started to jump up and down as he said this. Astral nodded, and slowly, the scenery faded away. There they all were, back outside Kite and Hart's house once again.

"II'm going in. You guys should come too." Kat motioned with her hand. Yuma, on the contrary, shook his head and raced off with Astral. With a roll of her eyes, the blue and brown-haired girl walked inside, Kite and Hart following right behind. They shut the door, then watched intently as Kat jumped on the couch in her usual childish manner. She smiled up at them.

"I got my memories back. This rocks!"

"I bet." Hart practically yawned it out as he stretched. He grabbed Kat by the wrist, then yanked her up. No words needed to be said to know he wanted to go to sleep with her. After all, it was now 10:00. They glanced at Kite for approval, which they got before they went racing off. Kite just laughed as the pair of rapid footsteps bolted up the stairs.

Even though it would annoy him later, he was glad Kat had her memories back.

Later that night...

Kat opened her eyes slowly and looked around. She glanced at the clock. 3:22 was printed neatly on it. The blue and brown-haired girl shook her head and sat up, wondering what was keeping her awake at this hour.

She didn't have to wonder long.

There, right next to her, was Hart, trembling in fear from something and whimpering. So that's what had awakened her. Kat gently put a hand on Hart's shoulder, causing the blue-haired boy to jump up in shock. His innocent amber eyes stared at the cat-green ones above him. Before either of them knew it, Hart had pounced on Kat in a hug. At first, she was shocked, but soon she was doing the same back to him.

"Calm down Hart. What's wrong?"

"The thunderstorm outside is freaking me out. I've never actually seen colored lighting like that."

"Colored? What color?"

"Red. Blood red."

Kat froze now. Blood red lightning. She knew where that was from. Shaking it off and deciding not to think about it too heavily, she watched instead as Hart shrieked and pulled the blankets over his head, while thunder went rumbling outside. Kat slowly pulled the blankets back down and stared at him. "What're you doing, Hart?"

"Being scared."

Another rumble of thunder blasted through the area, just as Kat was about to protest. She instead let out her own terrified shriek as the house shook. Both jumped under the covers, shaking.

"I'm scared now too. Let's be scared together!" Kat said, clinging to Hart as nuzzling his hair. He nodded and grabbed her somewhat tightly as another blast of thunder occurred. Soon, Hart had fallen asleep in her arms. Kat smiled, then went back to thinking about the lightning and what Black Mist had said. It was true she was holding onto a secret. One she hoped was never thrust out into the world.

If it was, she'd never be able to look anyone in the eye ever again.


	13. Chapter 13: Peace Doesn't Last Very Long

Kat awoke to the small sound of little raindrops pitter-pattering on the windows and the roof of the house. Not the kind of Saturday the girl had been hoping for, but she could make due with it. Slowly, she looked down at Hart. A small snore sound was emitting from him as he slept. Kat smiled and stroked his bangs. It was one of the most adorable things to see the blue-haired Tenjo sleep.

"Hart, you are just so cute." Kat whispered this as she stared down at him. In response, he stirred in his sleep and edged a little closer to Kat. The blue and brown-haired girl smiled again and looked over her shoulder. These were seriously big rain drops hitting now. At least there was no thunder and lightning this time. That had probably kept them both up longer than they had preferred. Normally, Kat would've been furious, since she was an early bird for everything.

But today was Saturday, (She called it Anime Saturday.) so she didn't really give a crap. Kat took one more look at Hart before she scooted out of the bed slowly, then tiptoed down the stairs. She looked into the mirror as she walked into the bathroom, then reached for her brush. The mess of hair clumps on her head had to go. As she began to run the brush through her hair, Kite came walking in. His bangs were a mess, and for once he looked normal, wearing a plain tee-shirt and some shorts. Kat smiled. "Finally decided to get up, did we?"

"Yeah yeah, whatever."

"Don't give me that tone, mister man."

"Whatever you say."

Kat finally let out a laugh as she placed her brush back in its proper place. She stretched, then walked to the fridge and grabbed a soda before following Kite to the living room. The blond and teal-haired jumped down on the couch in a lazy fashion, something Kat was not used to. She simply shrugged it off and cracked the soda can, took a few sips, then set it on the table and clicked the TV on. From where she stood, she stared at Kite. It was such a rare treat to see him like this. Kat smiled and leaned against the couch. "So, what'd you do last night?"

"What do you mean Kat?"

"I dunno, actually."

"I did the same thing as you."

"Which was...?"

"Sleep, duh."

"Oh." As Kat walked away to get the coffee maker going, she muttered "I knew that," under her breath. Kite glanced over his shoulder. "No you didn't!"

"Whatever!" Kat tried to mock Kite's tone from earlier as she came running back from the kitchen with a coffee cup. She handed it to him, then just stared at him for a time.

An extremely awkward silence followed right after that. Kat twitched once from standing still for so long. She rocked from side to side, trying to make some noise that would overpower the TV.

"Hey, where's Hart at?"

The question snapped Kat out of the little trance she'd put herself in. She glanced down at Kite and shrugged. "Probably still asleep," she said. Kite nodded and took another sip of his coffee, then sat back.

"Guess as long as he's not dead, I don't really care."

"Okay then?" Kat took a few cautious steps toward Kite. Slowly, she put her hand to his shoulder. Once again, silence followed.

And it was finally broken by an extremely awkward question Kat had to ask.

"Are you high or something?" Kat asked, staring straight at Kite and blinking while waiting for an answer. He whipped around at her, glaring at her with a very confused expression.

"What kind of a question is that?"

"A curious one. Seriously though, answer it."

"No, I'm not. Why would you ever think that?"

"Because of how you said you didn't care as long as Hart wasn't dead."

Kite just looked away slowly. "I never said that," he muttered. Kat smirked. Now she had him.

"Yes you did!"

This caused them both to start laughing. Kat rolled her eyes when she was finished, then jumped down right next to Kite. They both glued their attention to the TV now, preoccupying themselves and trying to wake up.

Suddenly, the sound of shattering glass and a blood curdling scream of pure terror and shock ripped through the house. Kat jolted up, then stared at the staircase, the source of the scream. Before Kite could react, she was already leaving a dust trail while running upstairs. As soon as she got to the doorway of her bedroom, she froze.

There stood Girag, holding Hart by the back of his shirt collar while the rain continued to pour, soaking the carpet in the process.


	14. Chapter 14: Words Can't Even Describe

Hello everybody who is currently reading these previously typed words on your computer and or mobile device! I welcome you all to the final chapter of this story. But, the adventure is not yet over. In fact, it's just getting started. My sequel to this story shall be called "Crystalized Secrets", and it will have MANY plot twists, revealed secrets, and a whole lot of action! But anyway, enjoy this certain last one!

"Kat! Help me!" Hart stared at Kat from where he was being dangled. Kat blinked, then snarled. She raced up to Girag, then blindly grabbed at Hart. Her opponent moved quickly, jumping out of the way and bounding out of the window. Hart shrieked as Girag hit the ground, then began running away. Kat peered out and scowled.

"Get back here!" Kat yelled. She didn't expect Girag to listen, however. The girl was smarter than that. Instead, she grabbed her Pikachu backpack and dove out the window after them, extending the ears into wings and soaring off into the sky. Girag looked up from where he was, then growled. He couldn't believe how much more coordinated Kat had become.

Not like it really mattered to him, though. Kat was not fast enough to catch up to him. Right?

Wrong.

"Give me back Hart!" Kat yelled, dive-bombing Girag. He ducked, then let out a confused and startled yelp as he tripped over a tree root. Hart was sent spiraling into the air, then landed on the ground with a thud. Before Kat could react and grab him, Girag was on his feet and running away with Hart in his grasp again. Kat once again was dive-bombing at them, making very little progress.

_Man, she's persistent. _Girag thought, jumping over bushes and skidding under tree limbs. _She might actually be able to put up a good fight after all these years._

Kat soared up high into the air. Before anyone could react, she was practically falling down to the ground, but was aiming right at Girag.

Finally, she succeeded in hitting him.

"Take this!" Kat basically screamed it as she rammed into Girag's back. He tumbled down, sending Hart flying again as the two wrestled around. Kat watched out of the corner of her eye as Hart grabbed hold of a tree limb that Girag had ducked under only moments ago, holding on for dear life as he watched them fight. Girag was throwing punches, missing either on purpose or because he was afraid of what Kat would do if she caught them, and Kat was scratching him like there was no tomorrow with her nails. Both had blood from their scratches coming from one another. Hart couldn't believe it.

They were equals in power.

"What the hell were you thinking trying to nab Hart in the middle of the day?" Kat questioned, then screeched as one of Girag's punches sent her flying. She landed in the mud, soaking herself in it and the still pouring rain. The blue and brown-haired stood up with a wobbly fashion, then watched in horror as Girag grabbed Hart from the tree. He smirked.

"I'll tell you what I was thinking. Barian World can use the remainder of his power for our own needs in obtaining the Numbers."

"But all of Hart's Barian Powers are gone. How would you pull that off?"

"They're not all gone. It just takes the right kind of powers to unlock what's left."

Kat let out a defiant growl. She balled her hands into fists, then attempted to get Hart back by throwing herself at Girag. Miss. With a thud and another splash of mud, Kat hit the ground. She groaned and sat up, then gasped. The sky had blood red lightning in it again, and Girag was in his Barian Form. Kat let her mouth go agape as she tried to stand. Girag let out a laugh, and with a defiant cry from Hart, vanished back to Barian world.

"No! No come back here!" Kat screamed it, finally breaking free of whatever grip Girag had on her and flying into the sky. She growled upon realizing there was no way to make that tactic work, then floated down to the ground. Tears slowly began to stroll down her cheeks. Kat couldn't believe she'd allowed Girag to escape with Hart! How pathetic, she thought. The blue and brown-haired girl looked up at the sound of an engine. Kite hopped off Orbital, who had been in motorcycle mode, and stared at everything.

"Where's Hart?"

"T-The Barians have him."

"What?!" Kite took a few steps towards Kat. He forced her to look up at him, then stared right into her emotional cat-green eyes. "Which Barian took him?"

"..."

"Kat. Which Barian stole my little brother?"

Kat looked up at the sky. She blinked, then spoke in an almost silent tone.

"It was Girag. My older brother."

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


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